The 28-year-old winger had been with Russian Premier League side FC Rostov during the first half of the season but has now returned to the club who sold him for a fee of £17 million back in 2008.

The former England international, who was once touted as a possible replacement for David Beckham on the right-hand side of midfield, has seen his career take a downwards spiral since moving on from the Lancashire club.

The Rovers manager spoke of his interest in the midfielder earlier on Friday having also announced a deal to bring in Karim Rekik from Manchester City, labelling him a player who possesses "a lot of quality".

"David is a wide player and we have been talking about wide players," Appleton told The Lancashire Telegraph.